TROY (WXYZ) — A 16-year-old from Troy nearly lost $900 to a job scam after receiving an email that appeared to come from his school — and now he's warning others about the red flags he missed.
"Of course, I needed a job, and it was through the school and I thought it would be valid," Jassal said.
Watch Jolie Sherman's video report below:
Jassal received the email in June about a part-time work-study opportunity. It included information about the position, schedule and compensation, and was signed "Sincerely, Bloomfield Hills Schools." While he thought it was odd the email came from a student account, it had a bloomfield.org domain.
"So, I thought that school email would be credible," Jassal said.
He filled out the application, providing his phone number, address and email. He received an email containing three checks for $500 each, which he was instructed to deposit. He was then told to send back $900 via Zelle. When the checks bounced, he realized something was wrong.
"Because of that, I was able to understand that this was a scam," Jassal said.
While Jassal did not lose any money, his father, Jasvinder Singh, said the incident cost him access to his Bank of America account.
"They have actually closed that account and they're going to report the situation to checks systems and early warning systems, and he may not be able to open another bank account for the next five years," Singh said.
A new report from the Consumer Federation of America found Michigan residents lost $2.7 billion to online scams and crimes in 2025, up nearly 60% from the year before. The study also found that while the under-20 age group remains the smallest targeted demographic, experts saw a 198% increase in reported losses from 2024.
Sgt. John Julian of the Troy Police Department said knowing the warning signs before it's too late is critical.
"Scammers are going to prey on what you desire: money. You desire a big return on your investment, so they're going to prey on that. Trust is built slowly typically, but the scammers want to build trust quickly," Julian said.
Bloomfield Hills Schools said it was unaware of the incident and provided a statement.
"We recognize that phishing scams and other forms of cyber fraud continue to impact individuals and organizations across the country. We remain committed to educating students and staff about online safety… encouraging everyone to verify unexpected emails or requests before taking action," the district said.
Jassal said he plans to stay vigilant going forward.
"I'm not proud of the fact that that happened, but now I know, anything financial, I'm running through him (dad), guaranteed," Jassal said.
It's important to note that while Jassal's school, International Academy East, is located in Troy, Bloomfield Hills is administratively tied to the school, so students have "bloomfield.org" emails.
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